Agenda and draft minutes

The members are requested to elect a Chair and Vice-Chair for the next three years.

County Councillor Jackie Oakes and Councillor Kim Snape were appointed Chair and Vice Chair of the West Pennine Moors Area Management Committee respectively for the next 3 years.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor G France – Chorley Borough Council, Councillor T Maxfield - Blackburn with Darwen Council, Councillor S Brookfield – Blackburn with Darwen Council, and N Kidd – United Utilities.

The minutes of the meeting held on the 10 September 2013 were agreed as a true record.

·  Blackburn with Darwen

·  Bolton Council

·  Lancashire County Council

·  UU Ranger and Information Services

·  Lancashire Wildlife Trust

·  Blackburn with Darwen Council – no report received

·  Bolton Council – the report attached to the agenda was noted by the Members

·  Lancashire County Council – the report attached to the agenda was noted by the Members

·  United Utilities – report noted

·  Wildlife Trust – report noted

Natural England would like to update the Committee on progress of the potential designation of part of the area as SSSI.

Alice Kimpton, Natural England reported on progress in relation to designation status.  A report was being compiled for consideration by the Natural England Board.  Stakeholder consultation would also be undertaken in due course.  Once signed off by the Board, landowners and tenants would need consent/assent as required.  The process of Notification through to Confirmation was expected to take approximately 9 months.  It was hoped that achieving designation would also help to attract external funding.

United Utilities sought clarification that it would need to obtain agreement before hosting the many events it holds on an annual basis.  In response, Alice suggested it would be helpful to send a list of known events, so that they could be considered and if appropriate, agreed all together.

It was agreed to note the report.

Fiona Cruchley presented the details of a feasibility study which had been prepared in 2010 on potential Mountain Bike Trail sites in the West Pennine Moors.

Unfortunately, no significant action had been taken over a sustained period of time, mainly due to the pressure on partner resources and the loss of locally based staff.  Difficulties in attracting funding had also contributed to a lack of progress.

Members were asked whether there was a desire to progress any of the proposals outlined in the Study and was any one organisation willing to lead the way.

Andy MacNae reported that Rossendale Borough Council would be willing to lead as the proposals were about encouraging new users into the area, attracting revenue and improving public health.  He would like to explore with partners not present at the meeting to see if there was any appetite and report back to the next meeting.

It was agreed that this was a sensible approach.

Members queried the direction of the West Pennine Moors Area Management Committee and the effectiveness of meetings.  There had been a significant number of progress reports and some members expressed a desire for a more strategic and forward looking approach.  It was acknowledged that many of the aspirations in the Management Plan had not been fulfilled, so perhaps it was time to assess how partners wanted to work together moving forward.

It was suggested and agreed to hold a separate joint Member/Officer strategic planning meeting to clearly identify the Area Management Committee's priorities (utilising the existing Management Plan which would be sent out after the meeting) and the resources required to support them. 

The date of the next meeting to be notified to members in due course.